The Rising Influence of Rising Affluence

[DewDiligence]

Canada’s oilsands producers aren’t likely to stop producing, says WSJ:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/as-oil-slips-below-50-canada-digs-in-for-long-haul-1421114641

In the escalating war of attrition among top oil-producing nations, Canada’s biggest oil-sands mines have a message for the market: Don’t look to us to cut production.

…even as oil prices settled below $50 a barrel Monday for the first time in nearly six years, those companies are unlikely to shut off the tap anytime soon thanks to those huge upfront costs, combined with long-term break-even points and lengthy production lives.

Unlike shale oil, which requires constant drilling of new wells to maintain output levels, once an oil-sands site is developed it will produce tens or hundreds of thousands of barrels a day, steadily, for up to three decades.

…Existing oil sands surface mines can make money at about $30 a barrel, and the most efficient underground oil sands projects run by Cenovus Energy Inc. , a big Canadian operator, can stay in the black at $35 a barrel.